Editor's note: Towson junior running back Terrance West declared early for the NFL draft after setting school records with 4,584 rushing yards and 86 touchdowns. The 5-foot-11, 223-pound Baltimore native is not enrolled at Towson this semester as he pursues the NFL and is sharing his draft experiences with Baltimore Sun reporter Aaron Wilson . This is the first in an occasional series leading up to the draft in May.

I'm dedicating everything I'm doing now to my grandfather. He just found out that he has stomach cancer and is having surgery. He's in my prayers every day.

My mindset is going to stay the same always. I'm forever grinding every day to get the most out of the hard work that I'm putting in. I'm training at IMG Sports Academy in Bradenton, Fla. They're working us out physically and helping us mentally. When the big stage comes at the NFL scouting combine, we'll be well-prepared.

I've been here going on almost five weeks. The facility, everything is top of the line, elite. They've got a great weight room.

Jeremy Hill from LSU is the other running back that's here. We push each other every day.

[Louisville quarterback] Teddy Bridgewater is here. He's got a great arm. I think he's the No. 1 quarterback in this draft.

We're doing mock tests [Wonderlic personnel test] like they'll give us at the combine. It's easy, but it's about preparing well and being smart. You're not going to finish all 50 questions because it's timed. You've got to have a scheme and a plan and get all the easy stuff out of the way. There's some math in there they want you to do. I didn't have any problems. I got a 21 out of 50. The average running back score is 17, so anything over that is good. I've been consistent. Our scheme is to forget about all the math and get the multiple choice and simple questions out of the way.

We've been doing practice interviews the way you do with the NFL general managers. They ask us questions and act like they're a GM for a team, throwing questions out there. They're prepping us for the interviews, any trick questions. In all the interviews, you control the interview. That's why they're interviewing you. It's great preparation. If you prepare for everything, you will get the best result.

I've had this picture painted for myself about the NFL since Pop Warner. I've been dreaming about this. Now, I'm living my dream. I just got to perform.

In the 40-yard dash, I'm strong. I got great speed. I just got to show the world what I can do. I'm not sweating it. I've definitely got game speed, but I can run for the clock, too.

[Towson coach] Rob Ambrose is a great coach. He helped me through the process and making my decision. He helped me a lot. I just turned 23 years old, so this is the best time for me to go pro.

I picked my agents because I felt comfortable with them [Pro Football Syndicate's Marc Lillibridge and Dan Saffron] I knew Dan through the football season of last year. I just felt like they're honest and straightforward and I got good background news on them. We see eye to eye.

[Ravens running back] Bernard Pierce, I'm good friends with him. He's a mentor. He gives me information about when he was in training and tells me to work hard and stay humble. When you get to the NFL, he says, 'Be hungry when you get your chance.'

Terrance West, the running back who set Football Championship Subdivision records while leading Towson to the school’s first title game appearance, confirmed Tuesday morning that he will skip his senior year and enter the NFL draft.